


owl rings and broken hearts

by Niriiun



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Light Angst, Multi, alcohol mention, slowburn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-28
Updated: 2015-10-28
Packaged: 2018-04-28 10:40:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,857
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5087545
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Niriiun/pseuds/Niriiun
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bokuto looks to Kuroo for help with proposing, unaware of just how much the question upsets him. Or at least, that's what Kuroo suspects.</p>
            </blockquote>





	owl rings and broken hearts

**Author's Note:**

> this is a commission for @ppastelkitty on twitter! hope you like it!!

Kuroo Tetsurou liked to think of himself as pretty smart. He'd always had moderately good grades in high school, and getting into the university of his choice had been fairly easy. Classes were a bit tougher of course but he seemed to handle them with ease.

Life at Nekoma led to a shared apartment in downtown Tokyo. The city was bustling, much moreso than where he came from, and living with none other than Bokuto Koutarou made it more than an adventure. Luckily they'd convinced Akaashi to move in as well. The quiet man balanced out their loud personalities perfectly. Life in Tokyo was never dull for the trio.

Akaashi worked at the cafe below their apartment, attending school to become culinary chef. [More often than not, he cooked their meals.] Bokuto was hoping to become a physical therapist, and currently worked part time at a health clinic down the street. Kuroo himself was working towards becoming a translator; he knew nearly four languages at that point. His nights were spent in the cafe with Akaashi as well.

Kuroo would've been content to live his life this way. Living costs were down quite a bit and none of them ever really had to worry about food. Kenma and Yaku would visit him occasionally, and there was always something new to do on the streets. He had no idea that the next chapter of his life would take such a drastic turn.

\---

"There's an accident on the corner so make sure you watch out for glass." Akaashi's voice was as even as usual, his eyes directed towards the book opened before him. The glasses on his face would need pushing up soon-- they were at the edge of his nose. [Kuroo resisted the urge to fix them.] His pen was working furiously to mark down his answers. Kuroo couldn't help the little smirk; Akaashi was hardly ever late with homework.

A soft whine sounded from the door frame, and Kuroo glanced over at Bokuto. He was bundled in a soft grey jacket, a black scarf wrapped carelessly around his neck. "Don't worry, Keiji! I'll be fine!"

Kuroo stared at the stray strand of hair on his head. It was longer than the rest and never seemed to spike _just_ the right way. He was tempted to reach up and fix that too but stopped himself. Really, his roommates were a mess.

"I know you will but still, please be cautious."

Bokuto saluted. "Understood! See you guys later!" The door closed quietly behind him, and Kuroo redirected his gaze to Akaashi.

 _He must not have class today._ The other man was still dressed in his pajamas, the material a light blue and patterned with little purple and white owls. They were a gift from Bokuto and him for his birthday last year. Kuroo had been certain Akaashi would dislike them but they had apparently become one of his favourite pairs to wear.

He wandered over to glance at the paper. Akaashi didn't stop his scribbling. Was he copying ... recipes? "Is that homework?"

The man _finally_ pushed up his glasses. He directed his gaze to Kuroo's vague direction. "Well ... not really, but I suppose it could be."

A quick glance around and his eyes fell upon what looked like a cover page. The words were penciled in before they had been gone over with a sharpie. Suddenly it made sense. He smacked his fist into his hand. "A cookbook! You're making a cookbook!"

Akaashi quickly looked back to the mess of papers on the counter. Kuroo could see the faintest hint of pink in the tips of his ears. He was blushing.

"It's nothing special. I just wanted them all in one place."

"I think it's an excellent idea. Are they just your recipes?"

He shook his head. "A majority of them are while some are from my teachers and a few from the cafe. I want them to be in an easy to find place that way even when I'm not here at night you two can cook something."

"You're trusting _us_ in the kitchen?" Kuroo laughed, standing up straight. "Maybe you should give Kou some lessons!"

Akaashi laughed too, Kuroo watching the little rise and fall of his shoulders. The sound of his laughter was always a beautiful thing. "I think we'd lose half the kitchen and maybe a finger if I tried to do that."

"That's true." He looked up at the clock; 10:24. "Oh shit I'm gonna be late for work! I'll see you later, Keiji!"

Akaashi waved at him as he ran to the door. "You watch out for glass too, alright?"

"I'm ready for anything! See you later!"

Oh how he wished that were true.

\---

Kuroo had seen the signs for a while now. The subtle flirting, the strange atmosphere-- he'd even caught what he assumed was the tail end of a kiss. He couldn't tell if they just weren't ready to tell him or if they were purposely trying to keep it a secret. Either way, there was an absolute truth; Bokuto and Akaashi were more than friends.

That didn't stop the undeniable feelings Kuroo had developed for both of them either.

He'd known for a long time. It had started with Bokuto back in their first year. The both of them got along wonderfully, and it was always a relaxing atmosphere around him. His love for Akaashi started later, probably in his third year, but it still happened. Gradually his crushing picked up the pace. Before he knew it, he was living with Bokuto and Akaashi was set to move in the following year. He really did have it bad.

Kuroo had expected them to get together at one point. He had just hoped they would be good enough friends to tell him right away. Perhaps they had their reasons, but Kuroo had no intention on confessing his feelings to them, especially not now. They were happy it seemed and Kuroo was too nice of a person to ruin such a thing.

The extent of his silence was being tested today it seemed.

Today would've been a normal 'go to work, go back upstairs, do homework, and sleep' schedule, but apparently Bokuto had other plans for that two of them. He was stopped by a hand as he was about to enter the elevator.

Kuroo turned, spotting Bokuto. "Hey, Kou! Back so soon?"

"Yep!" He looked a little out of breath. Sounded like it too. "H-hey, could I talk to you for a moment? Just for a moment!"

He felt his stomach drop but he still offered a smile. "Sure! Something you need?" Kuroo stepped away from the elevator, Bokuto keeping pace with him as they walked back towards the cafe.

Bokuto took a deep breath. "Well I ... I wanna p-propose to Keiji but I don't know the first thing to do ..."

He was expecting a 'hey, we're dating!' not a 'I wanna propose!' His walking came to a halt for a moment, Kuroo processing the words in all of ten seconds. "Propose to him? You didn't even tell your bro you were dating! Rude!' He tried to play it off with humour. Bokuto was easy enough to fool.

"I thought it was pretty obvious! I'm sorry, Tetsu, really I am." The other man was doing those absolutely _ridiculous_ puppy eyes.

"You'll have to make it up to me with a sweet of some kind."

Bokuto immediately lit back up again. "I can do that!"

"Now, what do you need help with?"

Kuroo watched as he dug around in his pocket for a moment. There was a bead or two of sweat on his brow, and that same hair was sticking out like a sore thumb. Just the faintest hint of purple marker was left on his cheek. It led him to wonder if a child had visited his clinic today.

"Aha, here it is!" Bokuto pulled out a folded up piece of paper. it crinkled loudly as he opened it, pointing at a few circled pictures. "I'm not sure which ring to buy and I don't want to ask Keiji. He'd know right away."

Kuroo took the paper and glanced at the rings Bokuto had circled. They were all beautiful, made from silver and sparkling as much as the pictures could convey. There was one though that immediately caught his attention. He pointed at it. "This one. I think you should get this one."

"That one was my favourite too! Okay, that one it is." The paper was taken back and placed into Bokuto's pocket in a messy haste. "Now I just have to go buy it. I'll be back later, Tetsu! Please keep Keiji distracted for me!"

"Hey!" But Bokuto had already taken off down the hall, vanishing through the doors into the cafe. Kuroo was left alone in the cold air with nothing but the scent of cinnamon and faint laughter.

Was it possible to feel heart ache?

\---

A few days passed after that, Kuroo waiting anxiously for Bokuto to finally do something. Part of him hoped they'd do it out of the house, maybe on a date together, and another part of him wished they'd do it here so he could see.

Akaashi stayed unaware that Kuroo knew they were dating he was fine with that. There was no awkward tension in the house. In fact, things stayed that way for nearly a week.

Kuroo got off work a little early that night. One of his customers had been particularly nasty that day, even going far enough to throw a cup of coffee at another employee. He was ready for a hot shower and maybe a movie. The man wasn't expecting to walk in on Bokuto and Akaashi naked and tangled on the couch.

There was the faintest glimmer on Akaashi's finger and Kuroo knew Bokuto had proposed. The ring he'd picked out was beautiful, a silver band with a small owl engraved into the diamond. It was absolutely gorgous and would suit its intended wearer.

His entire body froze. All he could do was stare for a moment, before Akaashi locked eyes with him. He pushed at Bokuto to get him to stop. "Oh my god, I'm so sorry, Tetsurou!"

Kuroo scratched the back of his neck sheepishly and averted his eyes. "I didn't mean to walk in on you guys. I'll come back later."

He was out the door before they had a chance to stop him.

\---

There was something poetic, in a way, about how the rain trickled down the glass. The drops slid down alone before merging together in a bigger drop. Sometimes they split apart as well, going their separate ways. Kuroo felt a little nostalgic looking at them.

He took a drink of whatever the strawberry drink was called, feeling the faintest burn of alcohol in his throat. Why was he so torn up over this? Bokuto and Akaashi were happy together; he had no place to interfere with that. No where in that equation did he fit in, at least not as anything more than a friend.

Kuroo stared at the window in silence. Outside, people still traversed the streets, their coats and umbrellas fighting the biting wind. He felt his phone vibrate in his pocket for the sixth time that night and once more opted to ignore it. The bar would be closing soon and the last place Kuroo wanted to go was home.

He laughed quietly, setting his drink on the counter. "I'm an idiot."

\---

Getting home was a harder feat than Kuroo wanted to admit. He nearly fell in the elevator three times and he was only standing. It took him easily five minutes to find his house key, squinting at it in thought. The door creaked open and Kuroo stumbled in, soaked from head to toe in rain water.

The house was dark, but Bokuto and Akaashi had apparently been waiting for him. He felt his heart sink a little. Why'd they have to wait?

Bokuto was on his feet in seconds, immediately heading towards him. "Tetsu, please don't leave again!"

Kuroo let his hand slip from the door handle. He fixed his eyes on the floor as Akaashi wandered over as well. The man struggled to stay upright on shaking legs.

Gentle hands pressed against his shoulders. They steadied his body and kept him grounded.

"We're sorry for doing that on the couch! We really thought you would be home later than that!"

Kuroo laughed bitterly. "Well here I am, home later than that."

"That's not a funny joke." Akaashi's voice was stern but he still couldn't look at them. "Going out drinking and refusing to answer our calls and texts is very irresponsible. We were worried about you."

"Keiji--"

"What are you, my father?" Kuroo glared at Akaashi but it looked more tired than anything.

"No, we're your friends and we were worried about you." Akaashi didn't back down.

The man broke free from Akaashi's grip and stumbled towards his room. He didn't get far before Bokuto stopped him. "Tetsu please, we're just worried about you. You're my best friend ..."

"Maybe that isn't what I want."

Kuroo felt Bokuto's hand slide off of him. He balled up his fists, nails digging into his palms. "W-what do you mean? You don't want to be friends with me?"

"You always were the dense one." The man sank to the floor, unable to hold himself up any longer.

There was a moment of silence before Akaashi dropped down next to him. Arms wrapped around his shoulders. "How long? How long have you felt this way?"

He buried his face in his hands. "Since my first year at Nekoma."

"You've suffered that long?"

Bokuto settled on the other side of him. "Wait ... You mean ...?"

Kuroo nodded, biting his lip.

"I'm so sorry, Tetsurou. We really had no idea."

"I know that. I didn't exactly advertise it either." He felt Bokuto hug him as well, albeit a bit tighter than Akaashi did. Kuroo could see the owl ring on his finger and couldn't stop the wave of sadness he felt. "You guys are happy together. I knew it would happen one day and I didn't want to get in the way."

"You don't get in the way, Tetsu. It wouldn't be the same without you here."

Akaashi sighed softly next to his ear. "I actually ... really like you too. Sometimes Koutarou even mo--" The rest of his words were muffled and Kuroo looked between them; their faces were a little blurry in his drunken state. Would he even remember this come tomorrow?

"Kou does what?"

Bokuto looked frantic, his face bright red. "Nothing, nothing! it's nothing!"

Akaashi batted Bokuto's hand away, glaring at him. "Sometimes he moans your name." The man in question literally collapsed to the floor and Kuroo couldn't stop his laughter.

"Are you being serious? Please don't be pulling my leg." He really hoped this wasn't a dream either.

"Yes, Tetsurou, I'm being serious."

"Our bed is big enough for three people." Bokuto's voice was muffled against the floor.

"D-didn't you just propose to Keiji?"

Bokuto immediately sprang back up, grinning. "I did! But I guess it was more incentive to get you to do this!"

Kuroo paused for a moment, squinting. Now _he_ was confused. He wasn't really sure how to answer, so Akaashi took over for him. Not without a sigh or two.

"We had our suspicions. I had no idea Koutarou was going to propose to me to get it out of you, but we did have a small plan. I can't say I'm happy with how he chose to go about it."

"I'm really sorry for that, Tetsu! I just figured it was the fastest way ... After I asked for help I waited a week and you never did anything."

Kuroo smiled but it looked pained. "I wouldn't have gotten in the way of you two. Honestly, I'm kind of upset you doubted me like that."

Bokuto scooted across the floor and rested his head in his lap. "That's why I'm apologizing. I really misjudged you."

Akaashi held out his hands, one to Kuroo and one to Bokuto. "Does that mean you'll join us? The bed really is big enough."

Kuroo stared at it for a long while. If this was a dream, he'd probably wake up and pretend it never happened. If it was real ... Kuroo wasn't sure what he'd do come morning.

"I ... Yes. I'd love to."

Bokuto wasted no time taking Akaashi's other hand.

Kuroo's consciousness seemed to fade out right in that moment. The next thing he knew, he was nestled between two warm bodies. Bokuto and Akaashi were already fast asleep at that point, and a quick glance at the clock revealed 4:52 AM.

It wasn't a dream.

Neither was the splitting headache, but Kuroo figured it was a small price to pay. He'd probably get a cold too.

"I couldn't think of anywhere I'd rather be."

Kuroo closed his eyes, feeling Akaashi wiggle closer to him and Bokuto's arm squeeze him just a bit tighter.


End file.
